Le Labo Ambrette 9

I have two issues with Le Labo's Ambrette 9: First, the concept of a perfume for babies. Why? Who needs that? I'm not a baby person and don't go nuts for "baby smell", but I also have no intention to scent my two adorable nieces until they are old enough to spell "Bergdorf Goodman". The second problem is that to actually smell Ambrette 9 for more than 20 minutes, even in the grown up version (the one actually for babies comes in a water base), requires bathing and marinating in this stuff.

The first few times I've tested Ambrette 9 I thought I was completely anosmic to everything past the chemical fruit opening. Eventually I received a much bigger sample at the Le Labo counter in Barneys and one day accidentally spilled half of it down my arm and into my sleeve. Finally I could smell it.

Ambrette seeds are the source for a natural vegetal musk. In this Le Labo interpretation of this raw material it's definitely a soft skin musk with a fruity undertone. The problem is that Ambrette 9 smells like the pale, drowned ghost of CB Musk Reinvention. Where Christopher Brosius has created a warm, robust musk, Ambrette 9 is washed out and watery. The scent itself is pleasant enough in the sense that it smells nice if you press your nose against a skin that has soaked it, but it doesn't give me the thrill of wearing a beautiful perfume.

Le Labo perfumes ($52 for 15 ml, there are also larger sizes available) can be found at Le Labo Boutiques at several major cities around the world and also at Barnyes. In the case of NYC I actually prefer the latter to the Elizabeth Street boutique because the chairs are more comfortable and the customer service is excellent.

Freaky image from amazon.com.

A Year Of Perfume: 2008 Retrospective

'Tis the season: Looking back, making lists and trying to summarize the previous twelve months in a way that makes sense. A group of us, bloggers with a serious thing for perfume, is offering a 2008 retrospective of the fragrance world. Each one of us is writing from a different point of view and location (some are based in Europe), and there's no common theme. I chose to look at events and trends that shaped and influenced us as consumers.

1. Launched in 2007, Tom Ford's Private Blend line was met with quite a bit of groans and growls from many perfume lovers. The twelve scents released at the same time made many doubt the amount of care and thought that went into creating them and accused Ford of trying to become an instant Lutens. Coupled with nose fatigue (who has the attention span for trying 12 new scents from one house at one sitting?), a general annoyance at the limited distribution and Ford's own controversial reputation all caused many to not even try. This year, however, found people giving the scents a chance and finding out they really really like them.

Say what you may about Tom Ford and the soft porn campaign he ran for his (tame, office-friendly) mainstream Tom Ford For Men fragrance. The Private Blend is well-made, interesting and actually worth the hype. 2008 has found the scents (if not the man) getting enough love that the latest release, Champaca Absolute, had people ordering blind. Quite a change from last year.

2. After years of dreaming, pining, hoarding the few precious drops left and paying over $400 on eBay for bottles that may or may not have relatively fresh juice in them, fans of Donna Karan's long-discontinued Chaos finally got their wish with the scent's re-release as a Bergdorf Goodman exclusive. Someone at Lauder (the company that holds the license for the Karan beauty line) has definitely been paying attention, as they created a full line of other discontinued items: Black Cashmere, DK For Men and the Essentials, all in the new black bottles.

As expected with such a project, the controversy hit two seconds after the first bottles were sprayed: Was the scent reformulated? Did they ruin it? Weakened it? No one can tell for sure, as those who still have some of the old juice admit, their bottles have aged (very well, in many cases, even if most of the top notes are no longer there), and it's quite difficult to compare. The new Chaos is lovely, but many of those who ordered unsniffed, based only on the legend, were disappointed to discover it's not an Earth-shattering perfume.

3. Speaking of internet hype, the biggest stampede of the year was probably the Balmain craze. Take a fragrance or two from a classic house, previously only available in Europe for full retail price, no samples to speak of, one name evoking a desired raw materials (Ambre Gris) and the other one named after a classic French icon (La Môme), and all of a sudden release them in the USA through an online discounter for a fraction of the original price. The result is a mass hysteria of blind orders, ending with almost as many disappointed noses. While both scents are pleasant and very wearable, they are not the pinnacle of French perfumery.

4. While Le Labo continued with their (super annoying and totally unjustifiable) marketing gimmick of exclusive city releases (Los Angeles, Tokyo and London, joining the ones in Paris, NYC and Dallas) which you can only buy in person at those specific locations, Serge Lutens has eased his grip just a little and allowed for more of his non-export perfumes to be sold here in the US. You can now get Santal de Mysore, Bois de violette, Bois et Fruits and Un Bois Sepia at Bergdorf Goodman (and even order them by phone). The first three were recently made available at several other locations like Aedes in NYC, Scent Bar (L.A.) and the Canadian Perfume Shoppe. In addition, Chergui seems to have made a semi-permanent migration into the export line and is available wherever Lutens fragrances are sold. While I'm not sure this means you will soon be able to buy Muscs Kublai Khan at your nearest Neiman Marcus, it does seem like Uncle Serge has realized a thing or two about the art of making money.

5. Guerlain have continued the trend of odd marketing decisions. Releasing Habit Rouge in parfum while keeping some beautiful old classics in an EDT form, thus making their performance less than stellar. Combined with the LVMH tendency to cater to Saudi sheikhs more than to genuine perfume lovers (I have no other way to explain that Four Seasons set which contained one former Aqua Alegoria scent or the other four digit items that look more like merchandising than a perfume), it was not the happiest year for Guerlain fans. And I'm not saying a word about the ridiculous soft porn literature that accompanied the release of the Elixirs Charnels.

6. Chanel have expanded their Les Exclusifs line with more jugs of EDT juice while terminating the USA sales of the few formerly-available parfums (Bois de Isles and Cuir de Russie). Apparently, they think we all want to be supersized or go swimming in our bottles. While the new Sycomore is available wherever Les Exclusifs are sold (which means hardly anywhere), Beige is limited to Saks 5th Avenue's NYC flagship. According to a source in Chanel USA, it was never meant to be a major release and they were quite surprised at the internet uproar and downpour of phone orders the store has received. The result of the many blind buys was the usual disappointment, when buyers discovered Beige was a very tame floral and not as interesting as they hoped. What else is new?

7. Perfumes- The Guide by Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez is not the first book about perfumes. It's also a much less definite guide than the publisher would have you believe. Its strength (and also greatest weakness) is making perfume literature into entertainment. It has a somewhat broader appeal than most fragrance-related books (though for the life of me I cannot see the average L'Eau d'Issey one-bottle-a-year customer buying or enjoying this), and provides quite a bit of amusement to those who've sniffed a thing or two. Written by a scientist (Turin)and a former blogger and MakeupAlley popular reviewer (Sanchez), it mixes pop culture, snark and quite a bit of perfume knowledge. Still, at the end of the day, it's a book about the authors' opinions, a fact that seems to have escaped some of the online perfume community, fans and foes alike.

The release of the book was followed by a massive internet uproar from people who found their beloved scents being trashed. It was nearly as entertaining as some of Sanchez's more infamous quips, but not quite.

8. 2008 was the year the online perfume conversation has become even more important than ever before. Blogs and message boards have been spearheading trends for some time now, and this years we have also gotten some exclusive scoops and led important discussions. Denyse from Grain de Musc broke the story about the upcoming new Serge Lutens, Nuit de Cellophane, while I was the first to sniff and write about the latest Frederic Malle, Dans tes Bras. Our growing relevance is equal parts hard work, deep passion for the subject at hand and our loyal readers who make the effort enjoyable and worthwhile. For that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

And a special thank you to Helg of Perfume Shrine for organizing this blogging event.

For more 2008 Retrospective, please visit these blogs:

1000 Fragrances

Ars Aromatica

A Rose Beyond the Thames

Bittergrace Notes

Grain de Musc

I Smell Therefore I Am

Legerdenez

Notes from the Ledge

Olfactarama

Savvy Thinker

Tuilleries

The Perfume Shrine

Warm Fuzzies- Le Labo Vanille 44

I remember when the news first broke about the Le Labo Paris exclusive, Vanille 44, people were equally excited and disappointed. Some wondered what could be so special in a vanilla fragrance to justify the hype and the price (obviously they have yet to be introduced to Shalimar parfum), while others went into a vanilla coma based on the fantasy and the imaginary pleasure.

Then the first samples arrived and it became clear that once again, Le Labo aren't into accuracy in naming. While there's vanilla somewhere in the composition, this isn't about smelling like cupcakes (good), but those who hoped for a modern Shalimar offspring were disappointed. Still, the fragrance has created enough obsession, addiction and devotion. And of course irritation about the company's marketing methods.

I was ready to buy a bottle last summer when I was in Paris. But once I actually tried it on, I just couldn't see why I should. Granted, it was pleasant and wearable, but it didn't rock my world enough to justify the cost (it was during a week the US dollar was at its humblest point and the exchange rate was impossible. The price was somewhere north of $300).

I resisted when during the month of September you could get bottles at the Colette mini-store in NYC (it was a limited time thing), but I did go for a decant (The Perfumed Court has them), seeing as I liked it enough to want to have some on hand. I can't help it: Vanille 44 makes me happy in its weird little way.

It's not the vanilla, I can tell you that. What I'm getting is the rare creature of soft and warm incense, peppery on top, woody and fuzzy later on. It lacks any sharp edges or mysterious sexiness. Instead, there's a mellow, squishy musk and a mostly dry, smooth ambery base that works for me like a cashmere wrap.

It's called Vanille, but it's a grownup, unisex scent, more complex than meets the eye and nose at first. Had it been reasonably priced, I'd happily buy a bottle and indulge often. But at twice the price of a Lutens bell jar, I expect at least that level of greatness, which is just not there.

Le Labo Vanille 44 can only be purchased from Colette, Paris (their willingness to ship overseas is questionable). Samples and Decants can be purchased from The Perfumed Court. That's how I got mine.

Photo: Early morning in the Bois du Boulogne by Tara Bradford, Paris Parfait.

A Visit to the Le Labo Boutique

I spent a joyous afternoon sniffing and trying on perfumes at the NYC Le Labo store (233 Elizabeth Street). They have good stuff in those modest looking bottles, that are openly displayed on small side tables as well as on the main counter. Visitors can play on their own or be helped and advised.

I went straight to the Labdanum 18, which is everything they promise. It's surprisingly powdery-ambery, very soft and sexy (and lasts forever). I would have bought it on the spot if it wasn't almost identical to Barbara Bui (at least on my skin). It's good to know I have an excellent alternative for when my bottle runs out.

I loved Iris 39. It's an elegant woodsy iris, less pretty than my favorite take on this theme, Parfumerie Generale Iris Taizo, but still gorgeous and interesting. It's extremely well-blended and balanced, none of the notes is allowed to take over. I found it very feminine, but that might be just my skin, as there's no girly note in this.

I also tried the NYC exclusive, Tuberose 40. I should have tested Rose 31 instead, as the chances that any white floral would agree with me are very slim, while a spicy rose is much more interesting. But I gave the tuberose a chance, discovered that it's pretty and full of orange flowers and neroli, but I really need to stay away from these kind of scents.

The other discovery was that The Blond can pull of white flowers beautifully. On a whim I made him try Fleur d'Oranger, and it worked. His skin made smell like smokey honey made of orange blossoms. It was quiet, not heady at all, and surprisingly masculine. Maybe he was the one who should have tried the tuberose.

The Blond also tried two more traditionally manly scents: The vetiver, which we both felt was too clean and sheer, and the patchouli, which was unlike any other patch scent I know. Patchouli 24 smells like the love child of Il Profumo Encens Epice and Andy Tauer's Lonestar Memories. If you like smoke, birch tar and distressed leather, this would be your scent.

I'm still undecided on which of those I should get and regretting not trying the rose. I'll have to go back soon or just order the Discovery Set. That would give me enough to play with and also perform some olfactory tests on my husband.

Photo from Le Labo web site